Difference
by Animegirl257
Summary: Light and Darkness have always been at a tentative balance in the Digital World. But a murder fused the Dark Ocean and Dark Area into a paradise for evil and threw the Light into a war for the Human World. A Lucemon that walks between the two holds the key to everything and sides pull for that power and control. But chance offers something else, and if you only reach out a bit…
1. The Killer Angel

Chapter 1: The Killer Angel

**So…I know I should be working on my other story that I haven't updated in 2 months but, well, it's not working out right now. I'm not abandoning it but it is on hold until further notice. And I recently re-watched some of the Digimon anime and, well, this idea that I'd buried a while ago resurfaced. I ended up tweaking it until you get what I'm posting now.**

**I originally scrapped this idea since it's an all OC story, as there were to many things wrong with it that I wasn't sure how to fix. Finally I feel it's at least decent enough to start writing. **

**A few notes before the actually chapter content you may want to know. There are no 'original' Digimon in here. All the Digimon in this story already exist design and ability wise. I'll be using the Japanese terminology because I haven't seen the English versions of the shows in so long I don't even remember half of them. Plus less Digi-puns. **

**More notes at the bottom, but those are a bit different.**

**Oh and once again going to only say this once but I in no way shape or form own Digimon or any of the content related to it. I make absolutely no physical profit from this and I'm not trying to anyway. This is all just for fun.**

* * *

"Hey, you doing ok?"

Light hazel eyes flecked sparingly with gold peered up from under the dark bangs that half obscured them. Wild, messy brunet, almost black hair that looked as though it hadn't seen a brush for weeks framed a pale and slightly gaunt face. A tiny body was nearly swallowed by the oversized hoodie the boy wore, his nervous shifting almost impossible to see.

"I'm fine," He said harshly, looking away from the blond who'd questioned him and wrapped his arms a bit firmer around the small orange blob he held and walked a bit faster over the grassy field.

The orange 'blob' opened huge green eyes, looking up curiously at the boy. Letting out a cooing "fu" it nudged the boy with its darker orange horn until he looked down.

"I'm fine," the boy said again, this time softer as he gave the little blob a small smile.

The orange blob returned the smile, though with far more gusto that it's human companion.

"I know, you don't have to repeat yourself you know," the blond said with slight annoyance, rolling his eyes as he looked down at the much younger child.

"I wasn't talking to you that time."

"Whatever you say," he said as he adjusted his blue and white baseball cap so it was firmly smother his explosion of blond hair. "Still can't believe I found a new kid wandering around."

"You're really lucky you didn't get attacked you know, Anthony. I mean, you have your partner but he isn't even past the Baby stages yet," the third member of the party said finally.

"I can take care of myself," Anthony said irritably, refusing to look at him.

"How old are you again?" The blond, Zack, said.

"Seven."

"Exactly, you're seven. Seven."

"And how old are you?"

"I'm eleven! I'm older than you so it's my job to take care of you, so you could at least be nice!"

Anthony wasn't impressed, "And if we're attacked then what?"

"Why, old Bearmon here will teach them a thing or two!" Zack answered confidently, pointing to the small black bear like creature walking beside him.

Anthony looked at Bearmon. The Child level Digimon wasn't overly impressive looking; he barely came up to Zack's waist and didn't look to fierce. Even with the blue belts wrapped tightly around his paws that made his claws look bigger or the sharp fangs visible poking out of his mouth Bearmon still didn't look like he would be able to really defend them.

Maybe it was his big, round blue eyes or the baseball cap that made him resemble his partner so much that broke the image. Either way Anthony wasn't very reassured.

But he didn't say anything, and, instead continued walking. The three ended up lapsing into awkward silence.

"So…who's your partner there?" Zack finally asked after a solid minute of the depressing silence. Looking at the small blob in Anthony's arms, Zack found himself giving up almost immediately. He hadn't bothered to learn the names of many Digimon that he didn't either see often enough or the ones that he was instructed to, under absolutely _no_ circumstance confront.

"You have any idea, Bearmon?"

The looked at the Baby level Digimon, shrugging as well, "I'm not sure Zack, I've never seen a Digimon like this before. Well…most Baby Digimon don't leave Rebirth Garden or their home villages until they're Child level, so…"

"Huh. I never really thought about that, but I guess it makes sense. It's like…a baby not leaving the nursery or something," Zack added.

"Well, they are 'Baby' levels and all…"

"Fufumon."

Zack and Bearmon stopped their conversation, the two looking at Anthony. Anthony wasn't paying them any attention and instead was looking into the newly dubbed Fufumon's green eyes.

"Uh, what did you say?"

"Fufumon. His name is Fufumon," Anthony explained, looking at Zack like he was a particularly slow child.

Hearing his name, Fufumon let out a series of happy fu's and snuggled closer to Anthony. Anthony smiled a bit and, without really thinking, he shifted one arm so he could rub his hand on Fufumon's head, still amazed at the feel of the soft almost invisible fur. Fufumon cooed softly and brushed his head into the touch.

"Despite being a blob this guy is pretty cute," Zack commented absently, also reaching out to pet Fufumon the moment Anthony stopped.

Fufumon glared at Zack and, with surprisingly fact reflexes, he jabbed his horn sharply at the blond's hand. With a cry more of surprise than pain Zack snatched his hand back, Bearmon rushing over to his side. The dull horn hadn't done more than leave a nasty red mark that, at worst, would bruise.

That didn't mean it hadn't hurt however.

"He stabbed my hand!" Zack shouted indignantly, glaring at Fufumon angrily as Bearmon looked at his slightly injured palm.

Anthony smirked, petting Fufumon again, "Good boy."

"Hey, that was _not_ a good thing to do!" Zack shouted angrily.

Both Anthony and Fufumon ignored him, the Baby Digimon curling up for a nap as his partner lulled him to sleep, "If he didn't hurt you it's fine. How would you feel if someone invaded your personal space?"

"That's not the…"

"Zack!"

All four looked up when they heard the shout. It wasn't hard to spot the source, the rapidly grown white mass standing out sharply against the blue sky. Something darker and sharply contracting rode on its back, but there wasn't any time to evaluate as it was already right on top of them. Within moments the white beast landed only a few feet away, tearing up some of the green grass.

An absolutely massive gryphon-like creature stood before them, taller than all of them even on all fours as feathered wings stretching out behind it elegantly. Pure white fur covered its entire body, broken only by a few purple rings around its waist and legs. A collar was fastened around its thick neck, the golden winged-egg pended almost disappearing in its fur.

As if that wasn't enough, black talons peeked out of its front paws, its orange beak looking deadly sharp as well. Even its back feet had been armored, the claws extending from the armor nearly as long as Anthony's arm.

And on the fearsome creatures back sat a young girl who couldn't have been older than Zack, everything about the duo contrasting. Where the gryphon was strong, practically screaming sheer power with muscles visible rippling with every movement, the girl was small and almost fragile looking with her petite frame.

The gryphon's green eyes were filled with an indescribable fierceness and threat while the girl's face was soft and filled with compassion. The beast kept its feelings masked but the girl wore hers clear on her face, dark hazel eyes clearly worried. Heck, the gryphon's fur was white as snow and contrasted sharply with the girl's darker skin and tied-back black hair.

"Sasha, Hippogriffomon, what are you two doing here?" Zack asked as he walked up, not the least bit intimidated by the beast who's shoulder was even with his head.

Anthony backed up a few steps. Even though the newcomer was obviously friendly if Zack's reaction was anything to go by, just seeing the massive and powerful creature was unnerving and overruled childish fascination.

'Who's that?" Hippogriffomon asked in a surprisingly feminine yet still gruff voice. She nodded her head towards Anthony.

"Oh him? He's a new kid I found and…"

"We don't have time for this!" Sasha cut Zack off almost frantically, Hippogriffomon nodding in agreement.

"What's wrong?" Bearmon asked worriedly.

"We've got a small army of Black World troops right behind us!" Sasha shouted, looking behind her as if she expected to see them coming over the next hill any second.

"What kind of troops?" Zack asked.

"Mostly Child levels along with a few Adults. Bakemon, Vilemon, a few corrupted Gazimon…it's a small group that doesn't pose a real threat by itself but…" Hippogriffomon explained.

"Then what are you two so worried about? Bearmon can't evolve to Perfect like you, but we've been training a lot," Zack interrupted, grinning to himself, "Together we can easily take them out, right Bearmon?"

Bearmon nodded, "Yeah!"

"They aren't what we're worried about!" Sasha said, clearly frustrated.

Zack sighed, "Then what? Just say it already! It's not like we can read your mind or anything…"

"There's a Demon Lord with them!"

* * *

The Medical Bay was a rather complex place. It had to take into account the various types and sizes of any of the Digimon who visited it, though most were simply healed by one of the worker Digimon and then released to prevent things from getting too complicated or crowded. This kept the area clear and ready for any serious injuries or special cases.

It was with the humans that they faced a few more problems.

A small stack of books sat on a desk, various comics and graphic novels mixed in with traditional materials. After a few moments a hand set one to the side before shifting through the stack. After a moment one was selected from the middle, disrupting the neat pile a bit and bumping the purple and black Digivice a bit.

The teen lying in the white bed didn't care, instead opening the graphic novel and starting to read. He pushed back some of his messy black hair still slightly tinted with fading blue hair dye. Absently his light brown eyes looked up towards the clock and he gave a frustrated sigh at seeing that only an hour had passed.

As much as he wanted to get up and do _something_, he couldn't just leave his room in the Medical Bay without permission or else there'd be hell to pay. And he couldn't even talk with anyone else to help pass the time; he was the only being, human or Digimon, present in the room.

The teen grumbled to himself unhappily. He was perfectly fine (now) and he wasn't even in a room with any real medical equipment or anything; just a 'resting room' he had to stay in until he was deemed 'fit'.

"Hey Eric," A childish voice called as the door (a simple push door for obvious reasons) opened.

In stumbled a purple bipedal Digimon, a bushy tail flicking behind him to help him regain his balance. The tips of his paws, tail, and muzzle were tipped with soft white fur, small black claws poking through the fluff. A large red gem was embedded on his head and tiny black wings extended from his back, twitching a bit.

"There you are, Dorumon," Eric said as he closed the novel without bothering to mark the page.

Dorumon walked over to Eric, who reached down and scratched the Beast Digimon behind one of his large black stripped ears. Dorumon let out a happy noise, leaning into the touch and letting golden eyes close at the comforting sensation.

"How are you feeling after breaking your leg, Eric?" Dorumon asked as his partner withdrew his hand.

"I'm perfectly fine now but _someone_ won't let me leave until she deems I'm fine," Eric grumbled, sticking his once-broken let out for emphasis.

"Maybe she just doesn't want you back here tomorrow for doing something else. You _are_ in here a lot," Dorumon pointed out.

"I'm not in here _that_ much."

"You have your own room that's practically reserved for you."

"And?"

Dorumon sighed. Eric stubbornly refused to accept that he was a human, and being such he was far more fragile than pretty much any Digimon past their Baby stages. Dorumon loved fighting, it was in his very nature, but it was distressing how easily his partner got hurt and how he still put himself in danger.

But then again, without that stubbornness and acceptance, he wouldn't exist.

The door opened again and in walked a young looking girl, around ten or so. A red bandana helped keep her wavy brown hair under control and prevented the long locks from obscuring her grey eyes.

Floating beside her was a tiny, legless and pink pixie-like creature, tiny wings stretching a bit and the red heart pattern on her chest standing out against the pale pink. She looked around with huge green eyes that sparkled almost as much as the Holy Ring around her neck.

"So, can I leave already _Miss_ Larock?" Eric asked as he crossed his arms impatiently. As much as humans in the Celestial Capital trusted Digimon it was simply more comforting to have a human take care of them.

"I would let you leave _Willson_, but I'm afraid of what you'll do when I tell you this," Agnes said with obvious stress.

Eric perked up at hearing her tone, "Tell us what?"

"Once again, I'm not sure if I should tell you."

"Oh come on! You can't just _not_ tell us now!" Eric complained, Dorumon nodding in agreement.

"I don't have to tell you," Agnes said, crossing her arms and not batting an eye at the glare Eric gave her.

The small pixie tapped Agnes's cheek until the girl turned towards her, "What is it, MarineAngemon?"

"Agnes…you know you _have_ to tell them," MarineAngemon said in her high, feathery voice.

"…Fine," Agnes said with a sigh, frowning as she heard Eric give off a little cheer, "But! You have to stay _here_. You can leave this room but you cannot do what I know you will want to do and so help me if you do I will make whatever injuries you get seem like _nothing_ in comparison to what I do to you!"

Eric froze under Agnes' icy glare, swallowing thickly. She was a thirteen year old girl who looked no older than ten who could carry herself with the authority of a trained adult. Few people could withstand her fearsome looks, much less argue with her.

She was easily the most terrifying nurse in the entire Celestial Capital.

"Understand?"

"Y-Yes ma'am!" Eric and Dorumon both stammered, nodding frantically.

The terrifying glare melted off her face in a moment, replaced with a bright smile, "Good."

A few moments of silence passed before Dorumon finally managed to speak up, "Um…you were saying?"

"Right," And suddenly Agnes' face was rather grave and Eric found himself wondering what had happened, "Sasha and Darcmon were out earlier and reported running into a few minor Black World warriors and decided to engage them before they could plan anything or terrorize any helpless villages or towns."

Eric decided to ask the obvious question, "And…?"

"There were more than weak warriors there."

"So what are we talking about? Some Perfect levels in the mix? Or was there an Ultimate leading them because if tha-"

"A Demon Lord."

Eric froze mid-word, looking at Agnes as if he was hoping she was joking. Dorumon stiffened, eyes narrowing dangerously at that. Without saying a word Eric threw the covers off him and stood up from the bed.

"Where is my-"

"No. What did I just say?" Agnes nearly shouted as she shoved Eric back. The black of his knees hit the edge of the bed, causing him to stumble a bit, but he refused to fall.

Eric had no such restraints, "Sasha is ten! And Darcmon can only evolve to Perfect, she couldn't take down a normal Ultimate, much less a Demon Lord!"

"And you think you can!?" Agnes shouted back, not caring about disturbing anyone else anymore.

"I at least have a chance, Dorumon can evolve to Ultimate and is an Imaginary Digimon at that!"

"You wouldn't even get there in time!"

"Well if-"

"GUYS!" Dorumon roared angrily, silencing the two, "There's something else, right? Someone else has been sent to help them, right?"

"Of course someone else has already been sent," Agnes replied matter-of-factly.

"And you didn't tell me this _why_?" Eric asked, looking down on the shorter girl.

"I was, but you decided to just try and jump right in and try and rush out to fight. Again." MarineAngemon nodded in agreement with her partner's words.

Eric felt himself deflate a little at that. With a sigh he fell back onto the soft bed and forced himself to relax, rubbing his temple as he felt the start of a headache, "Ok, so who did they send?"

Agnes let out a humorless laugh, "Who else but his _royal highness_?"

"Heh. Makes sense I guess."

_He_ was an obvious choice I there was a Demon Lord to deal with, what with his skill set and experience. He probably had more experience fighting the Demon Lords than anyone else, for better or for worse.

"Still angry about that one time?" Eric asked, knowing the source of Agnes' resentment.

"Why wouldn't I be? He refuses to come to the Medical Bay no matter what, and when I pester him about his injuries he just heals them in front of me! Not to mention he's going to run himself into the ground one day…"

Eric smiled as he remembered that particular incident where that'd he'd been in the Medical Bay himself and had the opportunity to witness the argument.

"Think he'll kill whoever it is this time?" Eric asked.

"Probably not, you know how the Demon Lords like to flee before they die, heal in the Dark Ocean, and them come back to cause more trouble," Dorumon pointed out.

"And you know how much he hates that," Agnes added, "When it happens again you know he'll be in a foul mood. Best to avoid him obviously."

"Why would I want to be around him anyway?" Eric asked, giving Agnes a disbelieving look.

"Point."

* * *

They were fighting again.

A small band of weak Black World servants and a tiny group of Chosen Children. Only two of the humans seemed to have partners who could actually fight as the third, and youngest, stayed back and trying not to show his obvious fear as he clutched his clearly newly-born partner to his chest.

The participants were different, the casualties and injuries would end up being different, but in the end it was the same thing that'd been happening for months. A fight between the two sides where it really didn't matter who won since the scale was so small. But they insisted on fighting these useless battles and wearing themselves down just as much as the other side.

It was tiresome really.

He was watching them, no one realizing that he was here, that the _real_ threat was above them and not in the fray below. He could end this entire thing in a second, whip out both sides with ease.

But that wasn't the point.

No, not only was killing those on his own side a stupid move when it could be avoided, but it was also just too easy. To quick, to simple, to little interaction with the enemy.

After all; no matter how weak the enemy, it had been a while since he'd been able to vent some of his bloodlust.

His appearance was deceiving, child-like and even fitting his level's name. His slim form appeared deceivingly fragile especially with his almost deathly pale skin. Pale lavender markings branded his skin, twisting and trailing under his white robes with a pair of wings half-curling gently around his waist as others languidly stretched out behind him. A final pair of wings extended from the platinum blond hair framing his soft, round and childish face.

A face that was irreversibly marred and ruined by icy blue eyes filled with harshness no innocent child or angel could ever replicate. A chilling coldness and a carefully controlled neutrality that held back darker things begging to be released.

He looked down at the fighting, indifferent neutrality steadily morphing into a look of contempt at the sight.

He flexed his hand a few times, the cool metal of the Holy Ring growing warm as the Digital Hazard awaken and fill him with power. A familiar power that the world both reveled and feared, praised and damned all in the same breath. The power that could shook the entire world, the power to rip apart entire layers of the Digital World and the reshape as he pleased.

It pulsed rather like a human heartbeat.

A heartbeat that the entire world relied and depended on, the heartbeat that that so many before had tried to tame and use as their own. The constant steady beating that would rip apart anyone who dared to try and use it from the inside out because they were unworthy. The could not achieve the needed balance, they walked too far on one side or the other and not the middle.

Except him.

It was only natural after all.

He watched as the fighting continued below. Struggles and battles, hard-earned victories and crushing losses, suffering and conquering.

All of it was irrelevant now.

Lucemon sneered.

"Pathetic."

* * *

**So, I do hope you enjoyed the chapter but I will warn you know; there will probably not be an update for a while. This is more or less a starter chapter meant to get the idea out there and show that I'm not dead. Figure I might as well get that out there just so no one is too disappointed. **

**I'm also tempted to open this story to other's OC's since I need several more characters to flush out the world and I'm not thrilled about making anymore OCs than I already have. But, I also know that isn't the smartest thing to do since a lot of people have very unique characters. And while that in itself isn't 'bad' per say, I just can't have dozens of 'out there' characters with huge extensive backstories or things I just can't add or fit in since most would be filling minor roles. **

**So, that was not an invitation, I am NOT accepting OCs. Rather, I'm asking anyone who reads this if they think I should either make the other OCs myself or accept a few from others? This way I can blaim you guys if something goes-I mean I get to hear what you all have to say!**

**In all seriousness I want to know what you think is the best thing to do.**

**Oh and another important notice; I will be changing the description of this story and possible the title as well. Just figured I'd give anyone who may decide to stalk but not Follow this story and suddenly has trouble finding it. **


	2. Black and White

Chapter 2: Black and White

**So in my break-time I finally finished my character sheets, planned the finer details of what happens in each chapter **_**and **_**sketched a basic map of the 20+ locations I may or may not need; something I honestly should have done beforehand. Just know for the scene below it takes place in one of the empty fields near the Celestial Capital.**

**And for anyone wonder about the Digivice; imagine any one of the ones from seasons 1-4 that suit your fancy. I'm not particular except for the fact that I like the more 'organic' looking ones more.**

* * *

Grizzlymon let out a roar as he ripped a Bakemon into tattered confetti that exploded into useless data moments late. But the cliché ghost's death was not unnoticed and in a matter of moments three more identical clones had replaced it. The three bared their teeth and made themselves and menacing as an animated bed-sheet could.

The massive Digimon reared up on his hind legs and let out a bellow at the three, swiping his red armored claws at the Bakemon as they neared. He refused to let them past and reach Zack, Sasha and Anthony, the later of the three trying hard to simply not panic then and there. The brunet openly gaped at the Digimon, hardly believing that the towering creature before him had once been Bearmon.

As one the Bakemon charged, obviously hoping to overpower and overwhelm Grizzlymon. The bear was unimpressed and batted one into another, knocking them aside. The third was tackled and crushed under his weight.

"I'm scared…" Sasha said, curling more into Zack's comforting hug. Her huge hazel eyes looked around nervously, "Where did the Demon Lord go?"

Zack stiffened but didn't say a thing.

Hippogriffomon let out a roar as she clawed her way through another Vilemon, ripping the thing in half easily. Looking at the mass before her she growled dangerously as she realized that there were still more. Either more had spawned from the Black World or another group had merged with the previous one while perusing them. Either way that only meant more cannon fodder that ate up time.

Despite their best efforts they'd been caught as the first of the Digimon arrived. In the time it took to fight off those the whole pack had descended on them, forcing the able partner Digimon to evolve to fight and defend their partners.

Feeling wasn't an option; Hippogriffomon was fast and strong, but with a total of five occupants on her back (even if one was only a Baby) she wouldn't be nearly fast enough. They'd be shot down in seconds and then easy prey. Fighting was far more viable at the moment; it didn't leave them nearly as open or vulnerable.

"…What's a Demon Lord?" Anthony asked with a slight waver in his voice as he backed up a few steps.

Zack looked at him, opening his mouth to say something but stopped short. Numb horror covered his face and he silently opened and closed his mouth a few times as his body started to shake. Fufumon was growling lowly, and Anthony only just realized that there was a shadow coving him.

Turning around, the brunet stopped short and openly gaped at what was easily the most horrifying creature he'd ever seen.

Absolutely massive and dwarfing even Hippogriffomon was a creature black as night, wings of pure woven darkness stretching out behind hit. Blood red claws extended from its grotesquely long arms, rivaled only by its four red eyes. Saliva dripped between a row of jagged fangs and out of its half-open mouth as it breathed heavily.

Distantly Anthony heard Fufumon let out a strange growling-hiss that, predictably, did nothing to deter the creature that completely and utterly eclipsed him. The piercing red glare paralyzed the young brunet, choking any possible cries or screams for help.

Taking a shaking step backwards that nearly sent him to the ground, Anthony found himself wondering with horror if Fufumon would grow up to look like this…creature.

This monster.

It was Sasha that had the sense to scream for all she was worth.

And like an obedient attack dog, Hippogriffomon abandoned her current prey in favor of attacking the giant Devidramon, digging claws and beak into black skin. The Devidramon let out a howl of pain, stumbling back from the force and falling onto its back with enough force to shake the ground (or was that just his body shaking, Anthony wondered).

"Crimson Nail!" the thing hissed, digging one of its red claws into Hippogriffomon's side, drawing a scream from the white Perfect. Its other claw found a place around her neck in that moment and tried to crush Hippogriffomon's neck. Hippogriffomon reared back from the deadly attack and raked her claws down the Devidramon's chest, deep gashes spilling the demon's data freely.

Hippogriffomon wasn't done just yet, "Heat Wave!"

The compact superheated air wave spilled from her beak, slamming into the oversized Devidramon with the force of a freight train. The black Digimon let out howl as it was ripped away from its target; landing on the ground and rolling several feet before it regain its balance.

Scrambling to its feet the Devidramon crouched low on all fours, tail flicking dangerously like a cat ready to pounce. Hippogriffomon copied the Adult Digimon, tensing lean muscles and observing it, waiting for it to attack again.

"I've never seen a Devidramon so huge…" Zack said from somewhere, sounding oddly distant even as he was suddenly right next to Anthony.

Anthony was shaking at the brutal display, deaf to the voices asking him questions and numb to the fact that someone was shaking him.

Just what was this place?

Before he could even hope to formulate an answer, a star fell from the day-time sky and destroyed everything in its path.

* * *

Lucemon, suspended in the air like a star and above all of them, descended into the fighting below to deliver his judgment.

It was terrible, brutal, ruthless and without mercy.

None of them stood a chance.

Not against him and his false, sickly beautiful light that burned all it touched.

They screamed and tried to flee. Fighting before had been fine when their opponents had been weak, but against him? Against his power, a type that few understood and even fewer ever had the honor to feel for themselves?

Whatever resolve they had shattered instantly and they turned and ran like the cowards they were.

Lucemon's soft face twisted into an ugly scowl at this. But they weren't his concern yet; small enemies that scattered like ants could be dealt with en masse later. The strongest and one who posed the most…relative danger was obviously to be taken out first.

A sudden burst of fine-tuned speed and he had slammed into the Digimon, wings awkwardly folding under its much larger form as it fell on its back and dazing it. One small hand lashing out like a viper until it pressed deceivingly gently against the chest of the Digimon before him, right where a human's heart would have been.

"Divine Feat."

The tiny ball of energy exploded forward, blowing a hole through its chest several feet in diameter. A strangled choking sound as the wound registered and the fragile body decayed into pinpoints of gold light moments later, the shower of fairy dust dissipating around him.

Without the body under him he gracefully fell the short distance to the ground and on the soft grass. He noticed it'd been flattened by the Digimon's weight and had an ugly scar where his own attack had burned it. The last of the fading data that clung to the grass looked a bit like golden dew, the parts in the air resembling the fireflies he'd heard about; shining brightly before blinking out of existence.

The air was empty without it.

So, more quickly joined it until the air was thick and absolutely choking with it.

A scream was cut short and Lucemon finished, letting the loose data flow freely between his fingers like sand and relaxing the iron grip that had just finished snapping a neck with no effort. Hard icy eyes scanned the field before him through the thinning curtain of gold, looking for any others who'd tried to run from him. On such an open field fleeing would be impossible.

When he saw none Lucemon turned around, looking over the humans and their partners evenly. For several long moments no one said a thing, the two parties observing each other. After a while, long enough for the loose data to fully disperse, Lucemon spoke.

"Hippogriffomon, how hurt are you?"

The white Digimon shifted slightly and bit back a hiss of pain. Looking to her side Hippogriffomon internally winced as she saw the deep gashes that the oversized Devidramon had ripped in her flesh. The data loss had already mostly stopped, but Sasha was giving the scratches a worried look, concern for her partner clearly showing.

"I can still fly," Hippogriffomon said without expanding, giving the small angel a resolved look.

But Lucemon understood, or at least as much as someone like he could. He gave her a slight, almost unnoticeable nod of acknowledgement, "Good, then take them to the Celestial Capital. Don't worry about being attacked; I'll make sure none can follow."

The meaning was clear.

Grizzlymon de-evolved back into Bearmon for the sake of weight and clambered onto Hippogriffomon with Zack's help and more or less sat in his lap for the sake of space. Sasha, despite her size and being relatively short, easily gave a hesitant Anthony a boost onto the furry back so he was set in front of Zack and Bearmon. Anthony, only having the use of one arm (the other holding Fufumon tightly) nearly fell off the other side before Zack quickly steadied him.

"Oh, and Hippogriffomon?" Lucemon asked as he turned away.

Sasha easily mounted her partner and took her place at the very front with practiced ease, though that didn't stop Hippogriffomon from glancing back to make sure she was set, "Yes?" the Perfect level asked.

"Just which Demon Lord is it?"

Despite all appearances he knew that this wasn't a false alarm; the bitter power and slight disruptions he felt were too strong and to close. The involuntary chill trying and failing to race up his spine wasn't imagined in the slightest; neither was the fact that his body refused to fully relax as it prepared itself subconsciously. He already had a feeling as to who it was, but that didn't mean he didn't want to know just was he was getting himself into beforehand.

"Lilithmon of course," Hippogriffomon replied bitterly. She wasn't stupid; she knew what this was _really_ about. And however irritating, annoying and insulting it was, it was just how things were now.

Lucemon didn't say anything but glared as he turned away, taking a few light steps away before taking off.

Watching the Child level angel grow more distant, Anthony finally swallowed his nervousness and unburied up his voice, "Just…Who was that?"

"Lucemon, a…ally of ours," Hippogriffomon said as she tore her gaze away and turned around, "Hold on tight; we need to get away fast in case a fight breaks out." Because stupidly powerful and long-range attacks that tended to turn everything in a quarter mile radius in to some form of collateral damage wasn't something she wanted to get caught in.

With one mighty push of powerful legs they were airborne, air tearing at them viciously as it tried to pull them off. Gravity to pulled at them harshly, dragging Hippogriffomon down a few feet. But a few flaps of massive wings and they were high in the sky, updrafts and wind currents keeping them afloat surprisingly easy.

"That Devidramon was _huge_!" Zack said with a whistle at the memory as he sat up slightly so he wasn't completely flattening his partner.

Bearmon nodded in agreement, "And strong; Hippogriffomon wasn't able to fight it as easily as she should have been."

Anthony shivered as he easily realized what they were talking about and opened his eyes; it was far too easy to imagine the looming creature with them closed like that. So he instead opted to bear the wind stinging his eyes, and looked around with fearful awe.

They weren't nearly as high as an airplane but without any of the traditional safety measures it was nerve wracking. And with a nearly 360 view it didn't take Anthony long to notice something odd. Blinking and wondering if it was just a trick of the wind making his eyes water or that they just weren't high enough but…

"They aren't going to fight, well, not seriously fight," Zack was grumbling when Anthony started paying attention again. The blond was looking behind them as if he was expecting to see something to prove him wrong.

"Yeah…Lilithmon will just try and recruit him again…not that that's ever going to work!" Sasha said with a nod, sitting up easily and confidently and looking back past Anthony and at Zack and Bearmon, the two nodding in agreement.

Hippogriffomon frowned as best as she could as she ignored the pain, though no one could see it, "That may be true but I hate her always using some of us as bait to draw him out. The least she could do would be to actually fight him and not just flee back to the Black World whenever things don't go her way."

"Or give up," Sasha added helpfully.

"Um…"

Anthony paused, thinking for a second and looking down at a now peaceful Fufumon, "Who's Lilithmon?"

"She's the Demon Lord we were so worried about," Hippogriffomon supplied, continuing as she saw another question already forming, "A Demon Lord is a terrible powerful evil Digimon who lives off human sin. Imagine that super-powered Devidramon that attacked you."

Anthon nodded slowly.

"Now imagine something a hundred times stronger, possibly even more."

It was silent after that for a while, Hippogriffomon beating her wings every so often to keep them afloat and in the air as he muscles rippled powerfully. Zack still seemed to be waiting for something to happen, casting glances behind him every so often. Anthony fidgeted as his mind refused to let go of one question in particular.

"Just why does Lilithmon want to try and recruit Lucemon then?" At the strange look everyone was giving him he continued, "Lucemon's an angel right? And Lilithmon is a Demon lord so why does she think she could recruit him?" He didn't know too much about angels and demons but from what he did know this didn't make sense at all…

"Well, it's a bit complicated you see…" Bearmon started, trying to find a way to say it without scaring the younger boy considering the explanation Hippogriffomon gave him.

Maybe it was because it was who it came from that it had such little impact. Maybe it was the simple explanation said so casually that prevented him from jumping to any extreme conclusions or worrying about it too much. Or many his lack of knowledge or childish desire to believe in the best possible outcome, no matter how buried it was at times.

Because when Sasha said it there was no fear or doubt in her voice, "Because Lucemon's a Demon Lord to."

* * *

The Celestial Capital was always busy and something or other was always going on considering the large numbers of Digimon that lived there. With very few places to go they all had to entertain themselves somehow, though the methods often varied.

There was a reason there were many guards like Knightmon and various Chessmon placed as often as they could spare. It wasn't uncommon for small scuffles to break out between those with contrasting personalities or habits, though thankfully most onlookers tended to break things up before anything bad could happen.

Eric made sure to keep out of the way of any of the Digimon more prone to violence or simply easier to provoke; humans were received generally well but there were always those who weren't happy with something. Though Dorumon was only a few feet from him anyway, so there wasn't anything to worry about.

Eric absently looked around, still fascinated by the almost medieval look the Capital had, but with modern touches like ever-important electricity and everything looking 'sleeker'. The buildings were relatively tall, but having grown up in a larger city this was nothing. It was still a bit odd to be able to walk so freely in the middle of the street since there were no cars, though if you weren't careful some particularly large Digimon would run right over you.

The figurative and literal centerpiece was the castle that sat dead center of the city. Casting a glance back Eric was still surprised by how small it was considering the sheer importance of the place's most famous inhabitance, not even counting all the others who stayed there. It was still easily the largest building but it wasn't unnecessarily massively towering (though a good part of it extended underground, so maybe that was the reason).

It did make sense since there was only so much space available. The entirety of the branching city surrounded the castle was in a circular pattern to conserve the sparse space available, but even then…

Eric frowned, finding himself staring at the building a bit longer. It held a bit of nostalgia for many reasons. It was the first thing he saw when he woke up in the Digital World, the target anyone would always look for when trying to reach the Capital, and…

_Burning pain and someone was screaming loudly like they were on the other end of a tunnel. Everything was hurting, turning black as the ringing in his ears just got louder and louder and louder and…_

"What are you thinking about, Eric?" Dorumon asked as he noticed his partner wasn't responding.

Eric blinked and just managed to stop himself from running into a group of Digimon that were milling about in the streets. One of them, a Bastemon, gave him a rather dirty look before moving on. Eric rolled his eyes at that; when he'd first showed up everyone couldn't stop staring at him with fascination.

But considering this was the upper parts of the Celestial Capital and pretty close to the castle everyone here had long gotten over the novelty of a human.

"Eric?"

"Oh just…" Eric trailed off, not sure what to say and just grimaced.

It wasn't hard for Dorumon to guess what it was, "That was completely different and you know it."

_A dark shape was walking up to him, or at least appeared to be walking. Were they walking or were they gliding seamlessly on the ground? Whichever it was it didn't really matter; they were getting close either way and he swore the world was darker around the cloaked figure._

Eric shrugged, "Yeah, it was _my_ fault for thinking we could actually fight him."

"We didn't know who he was. I mean, you've done some stupid things in the past but even you would've have tried something like that if you knew better. And I should've figured it out who it was," Dorumon said, side-stepping a Renamon who was determined to not let anyone block her path to wherever she was going.

"Gee, thanks," He said dryly, looking down at Dorumon with a face glare.

Eric absently flicked a piece of his hair away that was trying to block his sight. He frowned at the blue-streaked tips and silently tried to will the dye to fade out faster, "We got luck. Very, very, _very_ lucky."

_Something was bright, so, so bright and obscured his view of the figure who he just realized had dark wings. But that was fine; he wanted nothing more than to get away if he could only move and retreat to the stretching castle to his side he could see to the side…_

"But it still worked out, didn't it?" Dorumon asked as he smiled innocently up. Despite the circumstance and awful things the memory was now a bitter-sweet one. A lesson they could never forget even if they wanted to and a terrible reminder.

_He couldn't see clearly and could only make out a massive…dragon knight? Whatever it was it was huge and covered head to toe in silver and blue armor; bladed blue and shining silver wings stretching behind it. It was a surprisingly comforting sight considering that the other winged creature was trying to kill him and might have just succeeded…_

"And now you're starting to sound like me. I thought you were the one who was supposed to _not_ encourage stupid stunts and behavior?" Eric asked as he raised a brow at Dorumon.

Dorumon shrugged nonchalantly, "You haven't re-dyed your hair."

"Please don't remind me about my hair."

"Why?" Dorumon asked with false innocents.

"You know why."

A toothy grin was trying to form, "No I don't. I must have forgot so you'll have to remind me."

Eric sighed, "Look, I…is that smoke?"

Dorumon looked up and saw that there was in fact smoke rising from a large building, their designation in face. Despite the apparent disaster that was going on inside the building few Digimon were giving the smoking building a second look.

Eric really didn't blame them; anyone who came down this path regularly had to be used to this by now, "God dang it Tyler…" he muttered as he increased his pace and half jogged to the building.

Slamming open the door Eric immediately regretted it as black smoke bellowed out freely. Eric coughed and back up a bit as he held the door open and let the smoke pour out and clear the air inside the building a bit. After a minute or so he deemed the air not _too_ hazardous to his health and stormed in, Dorumon right behind him.

"The hell did you set on fire now?" Eric demanded, looking around the slightly foggy room for the boy. A few random Digimon that had been trying to do damage control wisely moved out of the room.

A head looked up from where he was working; the younger teen having been fiddling with some machine or other that had obviously been spewing the smoke. The white mask on his face was tinted black from soot and his own dark skin was nearly black from the mess, though his black hair looked the same. The only part of his face that had been saved was the area around his eyes; the mess ending abruptly where his goggles had once been.

"I didn't set anything on fire! Why does everyone always assume that?" Tyler shouted defensively and crossed his arms as he gave Eric a pout.

"Because you've nearly burned down this building many times and have burned yourself so many times you've been to the Medical Bay nearly as many times as Eric," Dorumon answered pleasantly.

"I have _not_ been there _nearly-_"

"Then what's with the smoke?" Eric cut Tyler off, throwing his arms out and gestured to the room as a whole.

"I was trying out a new filtration system to capture the fumes and separate them from the air. I didn't realize that it wasn't working _quite _the way I wanted so when I opened it concentrated exhaust poured out," The younger teen explained and pointed to the corner of the room.

Eric blinked, once again forgetting how easy it was to not notice the seven or so foot black android in the room. Sleek black and silver metal covered the humanoid body, bits of red peeking out between the joints and sides. What looked vaguely like red and blue heads sat on broad shoulders, though anyone who knew better knew that they were anything but simple astatic appeal.

It was rather odd to see the HiAndroidmon standing there with what looked suspiciously like a joy-rigged fire extinguisher in one hand and a half-melted scrap of metal and other unidentified materials that didn't really resemble anything anymore in the other.

"Plus it overheated and melted, so I'm trying to clear as much of it out before it ruins everything you know? Now I have to start over, though at least now I know that I have to make a better filter…and one that can withstand heat better. Yeah, melting metal isn't very fun to deal with so I'd better see if I can't figure some alloy that has a higher melting point…"

Eric sighed as Tyler went back to working and ignoring everything around him. If it was anyone else it'd seem outright rude but anyone who knew the boy for more than a day had grown to expect this. It was just who he was, plain and simple.

Eric gave up trying to follow his thought process after only a few seconds of listening, "…Still can't believe you're only fourteen…I'm two years old and I don't understand a thing you're saying!" he muttered to himself and walked over to HiAndroidmon to inspect the mutilated metal he held.

"I would not do that," HiAndroidmon said in an only slightly robotic voice when Eric reached out to poke it, "It may not look like it but the metal is still very hot and would give you at least second-degree burns upon contact."

Eric quickly withdrew his hand, "Uh…thanks for the warning…"

"You are welcome."

Abruptly there was an insistent ringing sound of a cellphone that broke the relative silence of the shop. Eric jumped and heard a sharp thud as Tyler also jerked and ended up smacking his hand with the tool he was using.

"Could you…get that?…ah god that hurt…" Tyler muttered, nursing his hand and swearing under his breath as he looked at the bruise already trying to form.

Eric rolled his eyes but was already walking over to the table where the ringing was coming from. On the table several various cables sat, some hand-made from random and spliced wires, one nice smartphone plugged in and ringing loudly from where it sat next to a sleek black Digivice.

"This is Tyler's phone, he can't answer right now cause he's doing damage control from his most recent experiment that's gone wrong. The good news? There was no fire this time!"

"Hate you!"

"Anyway, who is this?"

"Hi Eric!" A young voice said happily from the other end.

"Oh, Sasha! Is everything ok?" Eric asked trying to not sound worried.

"Yup! Oh and Darcmon and I found Zack and Bearmon walking back to the Capital so we picked them up and we're heading back now."

Eric sighed at that; one day Zack was going to get in trouble going out like that. Bearmon could evolve to a high-level Adult but even then…The young blond still didn't seem to realize that humans were specifically targeted and didn't stand a chance when it came down to it, "Tell Zack that…"

"Oh and guess what?"

Eric paused, "What?"

"We found new child!"

"Really? So soon?"

Dorumon was straining to hear what was being said but still couldn't hear anything, "Eric, what are they saying?" he asked.

Eric ignored him in favor for trying to make out the spat going on in the background. "Fine! _Zack_ found him and I found Zack before he got in trouble!" Sasha said and it was easy to imagine her glaring with as much force as a ten year old could at the other.

"Well Zack's in trouble no matter what he does now."

"Zack! Eric says you're still in _trouble_~!" Sasha teased the other.

"Aw come on!"

"What are they saying Eric?" Dorumon asked again when he saw his partner chuckle, all but whining now.

"His name is Anthony by the way, Eric," Sasha said loudly to be heard over Zack's complaining, "And he's really young, I'm older than him!"

"Really?"

"Yeah, he's…uh…" There was a pause and talking in the background, "Seven! He's seven!"

"Wow, he's really young." Eric agreed.

"Eric…" Dorumon was whining now, there was no denying it.

"Yeah but he doesn't act it…" He could hear her slight confusion and unhappiness at that.

"Is that so?"

"Eric!"

"What is it Dorumon?!" Eric said irritable as he covered the phone.

"What are you talking about!?"

"Everyone's fine, Sasha and Darcmon picked up Zack and Bearmon and they found a new kid, now shush!"

"Really? But who is…"

"Shush!" Dorumon quieted and instead pondered silently, allowing Eric to go back to his conversation, "Sorry about that, Dorumon was being nosy."

Dorumon glared at him, but he ignored it.

"It's ok. And we'll all be back really, really soon anyway. Oh but…" Sasha's voice dropped to a whisper, "We had to fight a bit before Lucemon got there so Darcmon evolved to Hippogriffomon and she got hurt so could you…?"

"I'll make sure to tell Agnes," Eric assured. She'd probably have a cow when she realized that Hippogriffomon must have been flying on whatever injury she had, but that wasn't his problem (nor was he going to stick around long enough to see _that_ confrontation. No matter what anyone said there were many Digimon with pride issues, just some more than others). "Everyone else fine at least?"

"Yup!"

"That's good. Now I have to go because I think Dorumon's going to explode if I don't tell him everything ASAP. Bye."

"Bye-bye!"

Clicking the phone off Eric set the device back on the table and turned to Dorumon. The purple Digimon was glaring at him with annoyed gold eyes, though he looked rather ridiculous with the way he'd straightened and put his paws on his hips.

"Are you trying to copy Agnes or something?" Eric asked with a snicker.

"Since she intimidates you so much, yes, yes I am," Dorumon said with as straight a face as possible before letting the façade drop, "So…what was this about a new child?"

"There's a new kid?" Tyler asked, poking his head up as decided to acknowledge that the rest of the world did in fact actually exist.

"Yup. Not explaining since we need to go tell Crossmon and you're busy. Come on, Dorumon. I'll tell you on the way there," Eric said as he walked out of the shop, glad the air was finally clean.

HiAndroidmon gave the pair a nod of acknowledgement as they left but refused to take his eyes off his partner, just in case.

* * *

The pressing silence was broken as the large double doors opened, allowing for a single Digimon to enter. The reflective and near flawless floor echoed each of his steps despite his simple brown cloth shoes not having any real hard sole.

The Digimon was clad in white and teal, the outfit covered in various zippers and complete with a sweeping white cape clasped in such a way that obscured most of his face except his sharp blue eyes.

"Sir Seraphimon, Lady Ophanimon and Sir Cherubimon…Lucemon…has returned with his report," Sorcerymon said, giving a respectful bow so low to the three Celestials before him that his simple hat threatened to fall off the nest of blond hair.

"Thank you, Sorcerymon," The seraph to the right said with a nod.

Plated silver armor covered his body, and rich blue broke up the silver at places like his knees, arms and shoulders, his entire helmet colored it. Ten golden wings stretched up behind him, their pure color matched by the designs engraved on his armor.

Sorcerymon slowly stood to his full height once again, just in time to see Lucemon himself walk confidently past him. Two pairs of blue eyes met for a moment, one giving the other a fierce glare and an obvious threat.

The young angel smiled in amusement at that; nothing the Adult level could ever even _dream_ of could so much as touch him, much less be a real threat. Besides; Sorcerymon was forced to leave the room and couldn't come back until ordered or something happened.

"Celestials."

Lucemon didn't bow respectfully like Sorcerymon did to acknowledge the three before him as his superiors. Instead, he simple titled his head up a bit in acknowledgement and continued to stand tall at the foot of the steps leading up to the thrones.

No matter how many times he came here he couldn't' help but feel a bit amused by the irony of it all; not all that long ago they'd all be trying to kill each other and now they were allies. But war brought up possibilities and opportunities that'd be impossible any other time and he'd taken full advantage of that.

"Lucemon."

It was the woman who responded.

Looking strikingly like the other seraph her armor was almost entirely a beautiful teal color with silver highlighting it. It left her mouth and midriff exposed as it changed from bulky stuff to a smooth skirt that then itself that ended a bit short and allowed for a flowing white dress beneath to flutter freely at her ankles. Like her counterpart she had ten wings, though only eight of them were gold and the final pair soft cream colored ones.

Lucemon didn't spy her weapons on her person, but he knew they could be summoned at a moment's notice (a gesture that meant more that any outsider could ever comprehend).

"Lady Ophanimon." He figured he could return the gesture in his own way, though only those who truly knew him would understand the magnitude of what had just transpired.

The final Celestial, Cherubimon, clearly understood if his expression was anything to go by. Cherubimon was the odd one of the trio, not resembling and angel in the slightest yet undeniably one.

His entire body was a soft shade of disarming pink save for the gold edged white highlight running up and down his center and face. His hands were massive compared to his body and especially his rather short legs, the only thing save his torso even close to their length being his tall ears. A pair of Holy Rings encircled the two ears, similar to the joker collar surrounding his neck.

Ophanimon ignored the shock of her companions and continued like nothing had happened, though the smile on her face gave her thoughts away, "Lucemon, what happened between you and Lilithmon?"

"What always happens. She attempted to convince me to join her side and I refused. She grew persistent and I retaliated in turn, though she fled before I could do any lasting damage. Again," He was clearly annoyed even if it was mostly suppressed.

"She is persistent." Seraphimon noted.

"She is a nuisance," Lucemon corrected, "I believe she not so stupid to think I will ever join her side and instead enjoys making as much of an annoyance of herself as she possible can."

"If she was trying to be a true threat then she'd actually attack Sasha right after she called for help," Cherubimon added thoughtfully.

"I said she was an annoyance, not threat," Cherubimon frowned at the sharp tone but said nothing, fighting wasn't going to accomplish anything, "Killing humans is Demon's goal, which is why he does not leave the Black World often since all available resources go to trying to kill him if he is spotted. But Lilithmon tends to have her own far more personal goals; her attack on Ceresmon's sanctuary out of petty jealousy is a good example. If she was interested in just doing damage she would have done whatever she did to the Greenlight Springs in the Transforming Forest instead."

Not that what happened to Ceresmon's lands wasn't terrible or destructive, but things could have been far worse if it had been Greenlight Springs instead. The number of casualties was almost unthinkable; many times more since Ceresmon didn't allowed many into her personal sanctuary.

"Poor Ceresmon, she's not been the same since. Almost everyone she knew was there when it happened…"Ophanimon said, clearly pitying her.

"But what says that Lilithmon won't do the same thing again? Even if it isn't Greenlight every Digimon in the vicinity will perish, not to mention having another death trap to we'd have to avoid," Seraphimon pointed out because really someone had to. No one liked to think about it but they had to consider as many factors as possible.

"Wouldn't she have already done it if she was planning it though?" Ophanimon asked.

Cherubimon wasn't as hopeful, "Unless she needs time to gather energy or necessary materials for it. Which makes sense considering how wide-spread the destruction was, and still is."

"I feel that Lilithmon will not be able to create another Amethyst Forest since there is no way that she could have done that on her own," Lucemon said surprisingly confidently, drawing the three Celestial's attention back to him. Seeing their questioning looks he shrugged, "You should still prepare just in case obviously, but there is very little chance since she'd have already done it by now if she could."

"I believe we are all forgetting Beelzebumon. Even if he has not been seen for a while that does not mean he isn't planning something," Ophanimon said, deciding the current topic could be discussed later.

"He disappeared shortly after Anubismon was killed you know. And after that the Dark Ocean and Dark Area merged into the Black World, giving rise to our current situation…" Cherubimon pondered not for the first time.

"But he's been seen a few times after that; abate only glimpses at best but even then…" And there was Ophanimon and Lucemon could clearly tell that this conversation was going to go where it had every time this was brought up.

Seraphimon also seemed to realize it if his silence was anything to go by

"Well someone had to kill Anubismon," As ironic as it would be for the god of the digital 'underworld' to simply keel over for completely natural reasons, no one in their right mind would believe that.

Though he couldn't see it Lucemon knew Seraphimon was looking at him, "May I take my leave now? I can tell you have more…pressing matters to attend to."

"Beelzebumon hasn't made a move to attack any humans or even our own forces. Demon is far more likely since he wasted no time in starting the war." Ophanimon justified her opinion once again.

"Then maybe they all banned together and killed him then, it'd justify how they were able to overpower him at least," And there was Cherubimon again.

"Yes, please do," Seraphimon, to his credit, kept his voice neutral.

Lucemon could hear the discussion grown more and more heated as he left. It was imperative they figured out how Anubismon was killed, but each of the three Celestials held a different idea, though none of them could justify their reasoning better than the other and high-strung tensions only made things worse. And he held no desire to be dragged into the mix in order to break the 'tie', which wouldn't work since he didn't agree with any of their theories.

Not that any of them wanted to hear that.

Lucemon ignored the glare he got from Sorcerymon and the wary looks the guards gave him as he passed and continued down the hall until he reached his turn, never even bothering to look back. Instead he stretched his left hand before him and looking at the mark branded there, feeling the faint 'heartbeat' even now.

Yes, war truly brought on unique opportunities. Even the rare opportunity to reject fate for a different and new path.

He was not going to make the same mistakes as those before him.

* * *

**So, if you are confused that's fine. Plenty of important terms dropped left and right that will mean something later. Now, I honestly am curious as to what people think so far considering I'm trying to do something a bit different what with dropping you all in the middle of the story.**

**Well, it's the middle of the war, but it's also the start of a different, specific story as you'll see very soon. **


	3. A Pause is only Temporary

Chapter 3: A Pause is only Temporary

**Not much to say here really, just that I'm having one heck of a time trying to figure out what to work in and what to leave out. Obviously you want to see some of the other stuff but at the same time there's a limit to anyone's tolerance. Plus I don't want make the same mistake and end up repeating the same thing a thousand times. If you need more or less information then say so so I know what add and what to take out.**

**You all are intelligent human beings so see if you can't piece things together the farther they progress. **

**And I'll be spelling some things out later if that helps.**

* * *

It was a bit surreal to be here. The place itself wasn't very odd; it looked rather like a rather low-tech hospital with various random rooms and a few other milling about. Even the bed he was using as a chair was normal enough with white sheets and an unused pillow. What was surreal was that almost all of those who were running about weren't human, though he'd long gotten used to that fact. Talking creatures could no longer faze him; at least the ones that weren't hell spawn of some kind.

The Celestial Capital was an odd place. At some parts is almost looked normal, Digimon aside of course. And at others, like the castle he'd seen (it was impossible to miss) stuck out and looked strange to him.

At least there were more people here.

"So…you've been here a while?" Agnes asked as she looked over Fufumon. Fufumon was trying his hardest to not fall asleep in Anthony's arms, but it was clearly a losing battle.

It was nice to be around another human being again with none of the other Digimon around save his own. Zack and Bearmon had been (thankfully) called away by an older boy for some reason and Sasha had managed to convince a reluctant Hippogriffomon to be treated by a little pixie-like creature named MarineAngemon.

"A few days," Or so he assumed; he hadn't bothered to keep track from the moment he'd arrived, "I was in some caves so I don't know really."

"Well, that explains why Zack of all people found you," Agnes chuckled to herself, "Stupid kid's always wanted to go exploring those caves the moment he knew they existed and his partner doesn't have the sense to stop him."

Anthony looked down at the now sleeping Fufumon, "There's nothing really special about them...it's really dark most of the time and no one lives there."

"Well, you're wrong about there being no one there," Agnes said as she pulled out her rose-colored Digivice and held it out so it faced Fufumon.

"What do you mean?"

"The Underground Tunnels are filled with Digimon. Most of them are very weak and yet refuse to live in the capital so they…" Agnes paused and frowned at the screen, shaking it a bit as if that'd help, "…So they hide in the tunnels underground to escape notice. Being on your own is hard here, so you're very lucky that Zack found you before someone else did."

Agnes seemed to finally give up and pushed the device back into her pocket, ignoring the disappointing amount of information it brought up about the Baby. Anthony noticed her frown but chose to ignore it.

"Yeah…I guess."

"Now don't be like that, you're safe here you know!"

"I know that it's dangerous out there but…" Anthony looked away from Agnes' steady gaze. He'd already learned she was older than she looked but even then…"But…well…"

"You want to go exploring, right?" Agnes asked, smiling a bit at Anthony's reaction, "Don't worry, we all do. It's a brand new world after all and it's filled with amazing things. But it's also dangerous right now and you're not invincible. Your partner can't even protect you because of his level so you've had to protect him instead of the other way around!"

Anthony looked back at Fufumon's sleeping form. The Digimon was so tiny it was impossible to imagine himself ever being protected by him. Yet he'd seen so many things already, and when he'd come to the city he'd seen even more impossible things. Eventually Fufumon would evolve and then, maybe then…

"Be glad you're already partnered, Anthony," Agnes started and nodded to where his orange and silver Digivice was poking out, "Sometimes it's not so easy you know."

"Why?" It was an obvious and simple question but Agnes sighed with a smile.

"Well…your partner was an egg, right?"

A nod.

"What if your partner had already hatched and already started living without you? What do you think happens then?"

Anthony opened his mouth to answer but shut it just as quickly. The answer seemed obvious at first; why should anything change, that Digimon was still your partner, right? But with that everything had changed, including the Digimon.

They had a chance to live, experience both good and bad things and grow. Anthony knew just how much life changed people, for better or worse. Almost overnight things could be ruined, broken, shattered…

There was only one correct answer, "I…don't know."

Agnes had obviously been expecting this, "Well, you don't become partners immediately; that wouldn't work, bonding two people who hardly know each other in such a way. You have to reach a…agreement of sorts. At least that's the best way I can describe what happened between MarineAngemon and I."

Zack nodded slowly, "That makes sense."

Agnes nodded and stood up, "Good. Now you need to-"

"Agnes!"

Both humans turned towards the open doorway as the pink form of MarineAngemon flew through quickly, "I treated her as much as I could but she de-evolved into Darcmon and left before I could finish. She's mostly fine but…"

"Oh just leave her be this time," Agnes said as she rolled her eyes, "If Darcmon had her way she would only heal the life-threatening injuries and though out the rest. She doesn't want to _not_ feel at least some of the pain because she fears it'll make her go 'soft'."

Not that that hadn't been one of her hidden fears when Ophanimon had oh-so kindly pointed out that sweet, innocent and _weak_ Sasha was her future partner. The idea of it had outright offended her at first…_that_ had easily been the messiest partnership they'd had to deal with to date.

MarineAngemon seemed to have given up a while ago anyway, "Ok…fine. Maybe a bit of aching pain will make her more willing to be healed completely next time."

Agnes snorted, "I seriously doubt that will ever happen. And Zack's punishment?"

"He's being chewed out by Lady Ophanimon."

"Why does she even bother? He's obviously a lost cause," Agnes said with a sigh, though there was good humor in her voice.

"You know how much Lady Ophanimon loves humans and if anything happened to any of them…I really think that she wants a partner of her own but the chances of that happening…A compatible human is almost impossible for her."

"I think all the Celestials want a partner since most Digimon want one for various reasons. Why wouldn't they want to get closer to those they gave up so much for?"

Anthony watched the two with mild amusement and smiled a bit. He wasn't sure who Ophanimon was, or the Celestials for the matter, but from the way the two talked about her and her title she seemed important. He didn't even notice another person entering the room until they were next to him.

"So this is the new kid, huh?" Eric asked. Anthony jumped a bit and looked up at the much taller boy angrily. Fufumon, having been jolted out of his nap, made a complaining noise at the sudden treatment.

"Back already, Eric?" Agnes asked and gave the boy a flat look that clearly said 'get out'.

"Don't worry; I'm fine Doc," MarineAngemon giggled a bit at that and Agnes frowned at her (only causing her to laugh more), "Just figured I'd see the latest addition to our…'family' of sorts. Give him the grand tour and all that."

"Because I'm going to trust a seven year old boy to someone who can hardly go a day without getting hurt," Agnes deadpanned.

Eric nodded, "Exactly. And don't start; _someone_ has to show him around and I'm the only one available."

Agnes frowned at the teen and the two engaged in a staring contest. Dorumon awkwardly crept in and stood a few feet away, white tipped tail twitching a bit as he waited. Anthony looked at the new occupant, and once Dorumon realized he was being looked at he waved. Anthony didn't bother returning the gesture though he did see MarineAngemon wave back.

"Fine, fine…You aren't going to get lost at least. But no getting him in trouble and make sure you don't just dump him somewhere," Agnes instructed.

"Yes ma'am!" Eric gave a mock-salute before turning back to Anthony, "So, what's your name?"

"Anthony."

Eric smirked, "Anthony huh? Sounds a lot like Agnes you know…"

"I swear if you say what I think you're going to…" Agnes growled lowly.

"Nope, just making an observation, that's it! Now come on Anthony, Dorumon and I are going to give you the grand tour so you don't get lost, ok?"

Anthony nodded and murmured an 'ok' before getting up. Fufumon whined as he was disturbed yet again, sleepy eyes opening to give Anthony a drooping glare. Not that the orange blob could actually look threatening and was as menacing as an irritated kitten.

"Hey, just what kind of Digimon is that?" Dorumon asked as he walked closer to get a better look at the Baby level.

Eric frowned and pulled out his own Digivice, "Let's see…"

"His name is Fufumon. I really don't know what else you'd want to know…" Anthony said. Fufumon was currently giving Dorumon a curious look and the purple Digimon looked back, unsure what else to do. After a moment Fufumon grew bored and decided to look at something else more interesting.

"Well there's not much _to_ know yet since he's a Baby 1. I mean, he has only one attack that doesn't do much of anything…At least he'll evolve quickly and hopefully learn to speak by Child level," Eric said more to himself than Anthony, though the brunet listened carefully all the same.

"Get going already you four, I thought you were giving a 'grand' tour?" Agnes asked.

"Oh it's going to be dark soon…Come on Anthony!" Eric said as he turned and walked out the door.

Anthony hesitated for a few moments, unsure about following someone he hardly knew. Well, he really didn't know anyone here yet but he knew the older teen less than even that. He still wasn't sure why he'd followed Zack, though it was probably the fear of being almost completely alone.

"Go on. Eric may be a bit…strange at times but he's a good kid," Agnes encouraged.

MarineAngemon blinked, "Agnes, Eric is older than you by several years…"

"Are you sure about that?"

"Ummm…"

"My point," Agnes smiled as she watched Anthony leave out of the corner of her eye and follow Eric.

As soon as she was sure they were gone Agnes let herself relax and deflate with a sigh. She absently blew a strand of brown hair that'd escaped the bandana away from her face. After a few failed attempts she finally smoothed it back as best as she could and sat up again.

MarineAngemon had watched silently the whole time, "Agnes?"

"Yeah?"

The pixie hesitated a bit, "Do you…do you miss them?"

There was no need to specify who 'them' was; it was easy to guess and understand. After all, there was only one 'them' that the pixie could possibly be referring to.

"Eh…not that much. Whenever I start to miss them I just think about my life then and my life now. It's so much better here in my opinion; I can actually do what I want and I've made better friends," Agnes answered. She paused and looked back at her partner, "What brought this on?"

"It's just…" MarineAngemon stopped, trying to find the right words, "I don't know, he's just so young and…"

"And you're afraid he'll want to go back, right?"

The silence was all the answer that was needed.

Really it was rational. Anthony was seven and in a strange world (easily the youngest so far), why would he not want to return? Any outsider would figure the boy would want to go home to his parents at the first possible moment and pretend none of this ever happened. That all of them would want to go home to their world and leave this dangerous one behind.

Any ignorant and uninformed outsider who knew nothing of the children themselves.

"MarineAngemon, you know that everyone here has next to no desire to return to the Human World anytime soon. We wouldn't have been chosen by the Digignomes if it was any different."

* * *

Up here, at the very peak of the castle it was peaceful. Quiet, serene and almost completely isolated, the tiny balcony at the very top was the perfect place to simply think. Away from judgments and ignorant fools who knew nothing of what was happening, away from pressures and a world threatening to collapse and anything else just as unsavory.

Lucemon sat on the high railing, legs dangling rather precariously over the edge and steep drop. Not that he had anything to fear from such heights; even without his multitude of wings a mere fall would never be enough to truly hurt him.

The angel looked out, past the city and into the horizon as far as he could. One hand gripped the railing a bit harder until it threatened to buckle under the pressure. Cold eyes narrowed dangerously as his thin frame tensed a bit.

Not that there was anything to actual _see_, at least not in the traditional sense. No, what he was interested in went beyond mere sight.

As if silently signaled a massive humanoid bird landed without more than a whisper of wind on the small balcony, massive gold wings just managing to not brush the surrounding railing. With his entire body covered in sharp golden armor save deadly silver claws, the Digimon was a fearsome sight.

"So you felt it too, Crossmon?" Lucemon asked as he looked back at the Ultimate level.

Crossmon didn't say a word but instead nodded. Lucemon didn't need to specify what he was talking about nor did he need to give his response or thoughts. Blind he may be but he was not ignorant to the happenings of the world. His ability to sense energy changes was what made him the guard to the Celestial Capital in the first place.

It would be a failure on his part to not sense the sudden fluctuation or the foul energy permitting the air and wind from a source so very far away.

Lucemon turned back around, "It seems the Black World was trying to reach the Human World again. They didn't succeed obviously, but that's not the problem is it?" A breath's pause, "It's someone different this time; powerful and unknown. That's dangerous, as you know."

Lucemon stood up on the smooth railing, looking to the side so he could watch the sun slowly trek across the sky. It was far too quiet and had been for some time, something was happening, going to happen very soon. Eventually that something would happen after it reached its breaking point, but until then they could only wait.

"I'd recommend not allowing any humans out without authorization. It was foolish to let them come and go as they please in the first place anyway; that makes them easy targets."

The Celestial Capital was beautiful at this time where the sun disappeared over the 'horizon' and simulated a sunset. Red would tint the skies and eventually bleed to the black night, casting rather impressive lights over the Capital as surfaces throughout reflected the light. It was something few took the time to really appreciate, much less on such a regular basis. It was a small, simple pleasure that most had forgotten because it happened so commonly and without fail.

As blasphemous as it was to say, Lucemon watched it borderline religiously. It was one of the few things he found himself truly enjoying.

"Demon will be preparing for something big because of how long he's been silent," Crossmon didn't question how he knew this or if it was even reliable; everyone had their secretes and methods. All that mattered was that it was always reliable to listen and give heed to his words, "I know you'll know what to do if anything serious happens."

Crossmon nodded.

* * *

The Digital World was divided into different regions long ago. With invisable and intangable barriers and borders that one wouldn't even notice unless they actually looked at the geography of the world.

One massive ocean.

One enormous desert.

One range of mountains.

One field of ice.

Each of these areas were defined and ended abruptly for little reason. They never grew or changed to encompass more or less area; they always stayed mostly the same. A few things changed here and there, mostly caused by Digimon, but they would never change on their own.

One of these areas was, rather predictably, a massive forest that stretched for miles.

A sea of trees faded that into a smooth field of tall grass. Each and every tiny breath of wind rustled and rippled the grass like a lake of green. Tiny, delicate flowers dotted the sea of green in tiny misfit isles that poked above the waves that stretched seemingly endlessly, eternally.

Until the grass abruptly turned too cracked, dry and dead rock without a single speck of green to break up the brown. Gaping scars marred the ground, chunks of the earth having been displaced so they rested elsewhere or even destroyed entirely. Some of these scars were smooth and obviously made purposely while others were wild and jagged tears.

Of course, few people would notice these things since their attention would easily be stolen by the centerpiece.

The dead ground where nothing grew and never would again.

Because there wasn't any ground there anymore.

A fissure that looked ready to swallow any who dared to come to close was the epicenter of destruction. It wasn't an ungodly length or width, one could clearly see the start and end and to the other side, though even the largest creatures could easily fit. No, what was truly impressive about this fissure was the sheer depth.

Anything dropped into it was surly lost to the shadows obscuring the bottom; any who entered were easy prey to whatever beasts had made the perpetual darkness their home. Even the very rock had been tainted and all but poisoned by the event that had carved it in the first place.

There was a reason it was named Desolation's Mark, obviously.

It was still rather disturbing to think that a fight had been the cause for this ugly scar. Once pure earth ripped apart with ease under the might of each side until there was nothing left but the gaping wound. Not even an army had been the cause; only the two fighters who had achieved a higher level of power had caused this.

It was the classic example of Light vs. Dark, Virtue vs. Sin, Good vs. Evil, Right vs. Wrong, whatever you desired to call it the results were the same. No matter the name it held or the label that was given to each side, nothing changed. It all boiled down to two opponents who hated each other and had done their damnedest to kill the other.

And in the end the result was the same; they both died and in the end nothing was resolved or changed save for the fact that part of the world had be destroyed forever.

Each side had suffered the loss of their most powerful fighter and had been forced to regroup, one side coping with the loss of a leader and three of their strongest and the other with the deadly power-vacuum left behind. A brief reprieve since neither wished to move first, each side playing the waiting game and daring the other to move into a trap.

A red-cloaked figure walked up to the very edge of the cliff and peered down with disinterest and more out of habit than curiosity. He knew he would see nothing new but fascination with the sheer magnitude of the destruction always compelled him to at least glace at it. Large tattered bat-like wings rested half-folded behind him and moved a bit as the wind shifted. Coupled with the large horns that extended from his veiled face his demonic roots were clear despite the star-covered robe covering everything else.

It was growing dark very quickly but that was fine with Demon. It wasn't like he had anything to fear from the night.

At least one good thing had come of this fight. Even with significant losses and the death of their leader he'd been able to gain something.

With Lucemon's death there had been dire need for a new leader. Unlike their opponents any open seats had to be filled as quickly as possible before their own forces tore themselves apart foolishly trying to reach for something above them.

In the Black World everything was determined by power. Whoever was the strongest got to become leader until they either died or were overthrown (resigning was not an option; that was a sign of weakness and would be dealt with accordingly). There were only a few Demon Lords left since most died against the Royal Knights (not without taking them out with them of course) so the debate was rather short at least.

In terms of power Beelzebumon would have taken over and even Demon wouldn't have objected. Beelzebumon was a strong ranged and close-quarters fighter who was also intelligent even if he acted otherwise at times; if he wasn't he would have never bested Dukemon in their final duel. But Beelzebumon flat out refused and disappeared not a day later and hadn't come back since.

Demon wasn't sure about Lilithmon; she acted so flippant and portrayed herself as a weak helpless and hapless woman who was simple there for the perks. But he knew for a fact that Lucemon wouldn't have kept her around if she wasn't strong; despite their intimate relationship they felt no real love for each other. But she also refused, going so far as to recommend Demon the moment the topic was brought up.

That suited him just fine; he'd always desired command, though not to the extent he'd get himself killed over it.

Of course he hadn't been able to start anything major immediately; they needed to regroup and recover from their losses. And, as grating as it was, it was best to wait for the other side to make a move first, or at the very least relax enough that any plan of action would be easier.

And apparently the Celestial Capital was perfectly fine playing the exact same game. Though the Celestials clearly knew that they wouldn't give up their hunt for the Human World despite their leader being killed, they also knew they had the advantage. Demon and his forces had to come to them in order to win, giving Demon an obstacle that, despite being unwilling to admit it, he wasn't sure he could overcome.

And then everything, all the plans, tactics, and sacrifices suddenly meant nothing when a second Lucemon made his presence known.

A Lucemon who could have given Demon instant victory.

This Lucemon had done something few considered possible, he'd mastered the power of the Digital Hazard to such a fine point that suddenly all the precautions the Celestials had made would have meant nothing. Even more so than his predecessor to the point that he didn't even need to fully evolve to break that damned barrier that barred access to the Human World from those without 'permission'.

Demon clinched his hands.

He could have won, been the victor long ago. But no, this Lucemon had clearly been changed by the very power he wielded and now desired to do as he pleased instead of conforming to the role he was given. He had laughed, _laughed_ at Demon's offer and boldly, arrogantly, proclaimed that he already saw the outcome and held no desire to be on the 'losing side'.

Demon had tried to kill him on the spot for that.

Despite being only a Child level this Lucemon was strong enough to at the very least hold his own against him. One of them would have surely died if others hadn't interfered, if he hadn't lost his chance. But a bit of hesitation and uncertainty had slowed him and suddenly the celestials had another powerful ally.

But, after recovering from the indignation of it all, Demon wondered.

The first Lucemon, the one he'd followed, had used both the power of Light and Dark.

This new one used Light and Neutral and was quickly becoming just as strong as he predecessor without even needing to evolve.

And as he peered down at the scar that and been ripped in the earth so deep that it had nearly reached hell itself, Demon couldn't help but wonder just how strong the false angel be if he used all three.

* * *

**I could have made this longer with more stuff but feel that all five people reading this will want things to move on already. And for the past…three months my motivation to write has ranged from 'meh' to 'shot and left out to be devoured by some wild animal'.**

**So it's been a bit hard; hense my shorter chapters.**

**And believe it or not I still haven't introduced all the 'main' characters, or at least the ones who you'll meet anytime soon. I'm pretty sure that'll change by the next chapter though. Ah god this is going to be hard… **


	4. Without a Trace

Chapter 4: Without a Trace

**And now things start to get interesting. Well, I personally have this as my last 'build-up' chapter before I actually get to the real plot. A lot of people will probably disagree with me for a ton of reasons but those are just my notes.**

**Oh and something **_**very**_** important is mentioned in this chapter. You'll probably not realize it unless you're paying close attention and even then it's not going to be important tell later. But if you can find it then good for you!**

* * *

Naruki was known for being extremely safe despite its rather impressive and ever-growing size. The once small town had flourished under one man's guidance careful business practices and, having his own family and children, he had made a point on maintaining public safety despite the explosion in size. If the streets were safe and crime was low then companies were more likely to move in and family-run businesses had a better chance.

And though he'd passed away long ago the impressive police force that he'd help establish had only grown with the city. So the sudden bout of disappearances had people on edge. People were bound to disappear, but to have so many in such a short time period in a city that once seldom saw kidnappings?

At a desk the young woman continued to shift through the files and papers she'd printed out, reading over each one again and again. She'd been doing this for a week or so now, and she was both happy and disappointed with her progress. She'd been able to piece together the files by finding the most likely cases along with her gut feeling.

It was hard to describe it, but when she looked over the files she could just…tell which ones were more than what was being let on. More than anyone knew right now, even if others would claim otherwise. Ever since that moment she'd been able tell, as if something was guiding her.

Miwa pushed some of her black hair back, ignoring the slight headache she felt from frustration. Rubbing her violet eyes in an attempt to clear them didn't help in the slightest and she sighed. She took another sip of her coffee and breathed in the warm and comforting smell.

Coffee, in her humble opinion, was the closest thing to the elixir of life as humanity would ever get.

Miwa sighed heavily and leaned back in the chair. She had no reason to be doing this, she couldn't even have kids so she couldn't really understand the pain and fear those parents felt, right?

But she did have kids, twenty three of them in fact. Twenty-three young boys and girls she saw five times a week for a good chunk of the day as she taught them how to read and write and communicate properly. She'd helped them take their first steps towards growing as they'd draw pictures of things they likes and learned about butterflies (many of them stumbling over the word 'metamorphosis' in a way that made her heart melt). And she'd played nurse for each of them at some point, covering tiny cuts and scrapes with brightly colored bandages as she'd comfort each of them.

And though none of her 1st grade class had vanished yet, recently a boy in the 2ed grade had gone missing.

That hit far too close to home.

It also didn't help that she'd seen it happen. She'd seen him in the streets after he'd gone missing, wondering aimlessly and trying his best to not look lost. She'd been ecstatic to find him and had tried to catch him as he wondered into an ally at an ungodly time of night.

But she'd arrived just in time to see him whisked away by a strange creature into some kind of portal. She couldn't tell the police; they'd think she was mad.

That'd been over a week ago and she'd been trying to figure things out ever sense.

The door to the room suddenly opened with a slight creak as unoiled hinges protested. Miwa looked over her shoulder and wasn't the least bit surprised when a police officer walked through. He was tall with short hair the color of cinnamon and skin tanned from long hours in the sun. Brown eyes were clearly weary from a long day and the man let out a sigh as he walked over.

He let the paper he was holding fall heavily on the table, "You owe me."

"Thanks, Kin."

Kin snorted, "I'm serious; I could get in so much trouble for this."

Miwa was already looking at the paper as she held up her mug, "Coffee?"

Kin didn't say a thing but instead snatched the cup out of her hand and down most of the contents in one long gulp. Miwa frowned at him, "I was still drinking that you know."

"You offered it," Kin shrugged, "Anymore left in the pot?"

"Nope."

"Dang…"

Silence stretched for a few moments as Kin absently sipped at the last remainders of the coffee as Miwa flipped through scribbled information. Kin took off his cap and a set it on the edge of the table as he waited for Miwa to finish reading.

Miwa frowned, "This is it? I've already found more on the internet!" never mind that half of it wasn't reliable at all.

Kin sighed and set down the empty cup, "And that's the whole reason I'm risking so much right now, not because you're my little sister. No offence"

"What do you mean?"

"Yesterday some guys came in and took everything and wouldn't tell us anything. But they had the right papers so we couldn't do a thing and when we asked what we were going to do they just said that this had become serious enough that the government decided to step in. They wouldn't tell us anything."

Miwa looked at her older brother, "Why would they take everything like that? They should at least have access to the electronic copies."

Kin smiled, "And there is the problem. It doesn't make sense unless they're _trying_ to hide something. Prevent anyone from making all these connection like you, though then they've seriously underestimated the power of an internet chat room... But while I was, ah, taking 'notes', I looked through some other recent cases and…you know about those strange robberies, right?"

Miwa stopped and thought for a moment. She had been so focused on trying to find any hints on the disappearing kids she hadn't paid much attention to anything else, "I…think."

"The ones where something is clearly missing and has been stolen yet the burglar leaves behind goddamn _jewels_ to pay for whatever they took," Kin reminded, completely and utterly baffled by the idea. If the crook had those resources then why were they even stealing?

"Oh yeah, those!"

"Well, I checked some dates and guess what?" Kin didn't give Miwa time to answer, "There were absolutely no cases of any robberies like that before those kids started vanishing. And what's even a bigger 'coincidence' is that the kids didn't disappear until _after_ all those creature sightings!"

Miwa's eyes widened a bit as she finally made the obvious yet somehow hidden connection. She, like most everyone else, had been so focused on one thing that they hadn't seen the big picture.

The reports varied on what the 'creatures' looked like. Most of them were described as demons or monsters of some kind that had tried to attack anyone and anything close to them along with a few scattered reports of angels and beasts. And though they would go after unfortunate animals, they seemed to zero in on people. But no one had gotten any good pictures; apparently things like cameras and phones had started malfunctioning and ruined any possible evidence.

Shortly after that was when the children started to vanish.

There was one case that everyone knew about and knew how odd it was and was the one that really started raising eyebrows. There was a rich girl who'd vanished out of the hotel room her family had been staying in. She'd walked into her room and had disappeared in the ten minutes between her door closing and her mother checking on her.

There room was the penthouse of one of the tallest hotels in the city. And it was pretty obvious she hadn't jumped for whatever reason.

Then there were the bursts of disappearances that Miwa was looking into on her own time. In only a couple months a total of fourteen people under the age of eighteen had disappeared, hadn't been found in a few days and were still currently missing. Nine males and five females, their ages ranging from as young as seven to as old as seventeen.

And then there was the prodigy who'd disappeared from his dorm, the hospitalized girl who'd vanished right out of her bed between staff changes, the one boy who'd vanished from the locker room after his team lost a game, a girl who'd gone missing during lunch, a pair of twins who'd been whisked away when their parents turned their back for only a moment…the list went on.

Miwa wanted to be optimistic but she had the feeling that they weren't going to be seeing several of those children again.

A chill went up her spine as she thought about it even a little and she wasn't sure why.

Only a week and a half or so after that the strange robberies had started occurring. Things would disappear from stores and yet the robber would leave a single uncut gem of some kind on the counter as if paying for the very thing they just took. And once again the cameras and alarms all malfunctioned at the time of the incident before coming back online, no problems at all.

People's attention had been so scattered on so many things that it was nearly impossible to step back and see the big picture.

"The earthquake…" Miwa breathed.

Kin blinked, "The earthquake?"

"All this started happening a short time after that freak earthquake," Another reason people's attention had been diverted. They rarely saw earthquakes of any magnitude, so such a powerful one had damaged infrastructure and baffled experts, "Think about it, Kin! This city was so safe before, and after that earthquake everything changed! Heck, the earthquake even knocked out all the electronics in the city, just like everything else!"

"Miwa."

The woman in question stopped and looked back at Kin and saw his serious expression, "What is it, Kin?"

"Well you kind of went off there before I could show you something you'd find interesting…A place that got broken into a few days either had some really good cameras or our little burglar is getting sloppy…"

Kin pulled a copy of a photograph out of his coat pocket and let it drop onto the table.

Miwa stared at it and couldn't stop her breath from catching.

The picture was fuzzy and horrible out of focus with static covering most of the screen. But near the upper left corner a glowing and almost shapeless yellow blur could be seen. It was nearly impossible to see just what that blur was and some people could even make it pass for another camera malfunction but…

Miwa uncovered a simple piece of white paper that had been almost completely covered by the other papers. She didn't consider herself to be a great artist but after a few times she'd managed to sketch down a drawing that at least looked similar to that creature she'd seen spirit away that boy so many days ago…

Comparing the two the similarities could clearly be seen even with the low quality of the picture.

"You need to be careful. I may be assuming to much but I feel like that this proves that what you saw that night was real," Kin said.

Miwa frowned but didn't look back at him, "You didn't believe me?"

"Miwa, I love you and I trust you but you have to remember what I see every day. I've dealt with one guy so high on some drug or another that he thought I was a purple people eater who was coming to steal his kingdom of Legos. I'm not saying I thought you did something intentionally but…" Kin decided to stop talking when Miwa gave him a flat look.

"I understand, Kin. But does this really prove anything?"

"How could you have guessed this? Plus the day after we saw this, those government guys I mentioned earlier showed up and took the lot. Coincidence? I think not!" Kin took another sip despite there being nothing left in the cup.

"You were always the little conspiracy theorist when we were growing up," Miwa smiled.

"Hey, I was just trying to see how much you'd believe."

"Sure you were."

It was silent for a few moments.

"Kin, thank you for believing me," Miwa said quietly, "I just can't explain it but somehow I just _know_ there's something going on."

Kin sighed, "Look, there's not much I can do for you anymore and I want you to be careful. I just have a bad feeling about this."

"So do I, Kin. So do I."

* * *

For the past few days the skies had been murky with dark clouds. Almost every day there had been a light shower from the sky, some lasting for a few minutes while others spanned for several dreary hours. But after the last downpour things finally seemed to be clearing up, patches of blue visible where the afternoon sun tried to shine through and dry the damp streets.

This was a relief to many since a few people had begun to worry that the river the city drew its water from would flood.

It was also perfect timing for any of the pedestrians walking around today. Especially to one middle school girl who was walking home with an armful of books she'd just checked out.

Vera, as she liked to be called instead of Veronica, didn't consider herself to be a girl who stood out in a crowd. And she would be right to assume that since her straight brunette hair and dull green eyes wouldn't demand attention like those with bright blond or ginger hair.

But that suited Vera just fine; she'd rather be known for her words than her looks.

"Fewer and fewer people are going out each day…" Vera said with a sigh as she looked around the streets. It wasn't like it was remotely empty in the city now but the crowd of people was noticeable less, especially for people in her age group.

"Stupid school, making me go out to the library since ours is so pathetic that we don't have enough copies of _anything_ when our class gets assigned another paper…"

Vera let out a sigh of relief as she saw her building and adjusted her grip on the small stack of books so they wouldn't fall as pushed open the heavy door. She nearly fell face-first onto the slightly slick tile of the building and glared at the 'wet floor' sigh she saw opened and set in a corner.

A flight of stairs later and Vera was fumbling with the lock to her family's apartment, wincing at the ugly creak the door made. No matter how many times anyone said they were going oil or even replaces the old hinges it wasn't going to happen until the door refused to open.

"I'm back," Vera announced unenthusiastically and made her way to her room. Her father greeted as she passed him, though he was busy trying to somehow will his team to win whatever game he was watching.

"Dinner will be ready in a bit!" Her mom said from the kitchen before the door muffled her.

Vera dumbed the assortment of books onto her bed next to where she'd dropped her bag earlier. The room was quickly growing dark as the light began to fade so the brunette flicked on the light. After a moment she pulled out her phone and looked at it.

Her home number was still displayed on the screen with the only thing left to do but click the 'call' button.

Vera exited the screen and slipped the device back in her pocket.

Vera gave the pile of books a sidelong look, "Well, might as well get started…" While her resolve was still strong and she hadn't succumbed to the desire to just lie down and sleep.

Vera read over the assignment again, "Or not. I don't want to this tonight."

Without any care for it she threw the paper to the side and cleared her bed before collasping onto the plush surface. Tonight was a night to be lazy she decided. She'd finished everything else and didn't have the willpower to work ahead on anything.

"Another day, another grade," Vera sighed as she stared up at the ceiling, "Another assinement, another project, another quiz, another test…"

It wasn't like she was afraid of any of this; she was a decent B student in most classes. But…

"…Another lonely afternoon."

Vera turned to her side so she faced the wall and hugged her pillow. The walls of this building were nice and thick, and while that was usually a plus that meant she could hardly even hear her parents with her door closed. But she didn't want to open it and risk them seeing her sulking like this.

They'd tell her to go out, to see her friends either tomorrow or this weekend, never knowing she rarely talked with them anymore. Nothing had happened per say but as time passed and Vera had started learning, starting understanding the important things, they'd begun to drift apart. And it'd happened so slowly that no one saw it until it'd happened.

And even now only Vera herself realized just how much distance had grown between them.

"Why?" the girl asked quietly and hugged her pillow tighter.

She pretended that her eyes weren't stinging and her vision wasn't blurring a bit.

It was right around that time she heard it.

It was hardly audible and she didn't think it was real at first. It was a phantom's whisper on the wind that gently brushed past her ear and murmured something unintelligible into it. A series of wispy, airy words laced with…promises?

Vera frowned and titled her head a bit as if that'd help her catch the words better. Slowly she sat up and looked around to find the source of the unnatural yet mystifying words. They were so strange and foreign yet alluring and had captured her complete attention.

She didn't realize she couldn't hear the TV anymore.

"Hello?" She asked hesitantly.

Abruptly the words stopped and silence reigned for several moments. Vera looked around again, trying to see if she could hear the sweet alluring words again and actually understand them this time. Seconds stretched into minutes and still no words.

Vera shrugged, "Ok…Strange…"

The sudden onslaught of excited whispered words nearly made her fall over in shock.

Vera's body stiffened as she listened to the words. She couldn't understand any of them, couldn't ever even hope to fathom to what with the way they were constantly fluctuating and fading in and out. But somehow she knew what they were meant to be, even if the exact words were lost on her.

Slowly, mechanically, she turned a bit and saw it.

A shimmer in the air like a mirage danced a few feet away. The world around it seemed to distort and twist around it until reality blurred just a bit. The shimmer flickered a bit and grew in size until it was just a bit taller than Vera.

She looked at it curiously and a strange numbness crept over her. The words were beckoning and kind, soothing and numbing her wounded heart with their appeal. They were louder now to and she could practically feel the being they were uttered from leaning over her shoulder and whispering gently into her ear.

Without even realizing it she was walking towards the shimmer, the doorway that had been opened to her where all she needed to do was walk though. She reached out for it and her outstretched hand passed through it with little more resistance than warm water.

The rest of her body followed and in two long strides she had slipped through the portal.

After a moment the portal entrance collapsed and fell apart as the power that had held it together drew back and disappeared. Vera didn't notice that the exit had closed behind her; she was to intent on following the voices. She barely noticed the strange world she was now in, the blobs of random color light and circuit board pattern surrounding her not even earning a second glance.

With each step she took she felt a bit dizzier as he head grew foggier and foggier until, if she was coherent enough, she would have surely thought she was drunk. The colorful lights began to grow fewer and farther between as the world grew darker and darker. The path before her stretched into infinite inky blackness as calming white noise began to fill her ears alongside the wonderful voices that grew clearer with each step.

Somewhere in the back of her mind she realized she was hearing the ocean.

A golden light flew in front of her and suddenly it was all gone.

Vera abruptly stopped and blinked a few times before shaking her head to clear it. The last few minutes were blurry, running together and suddenly she realized she had no idea where she was. This place was…strange, nothing like the forest she had been in moments before. Heck, it didn't look like anything she'd ever seen outside a videogame or show! There was no way anywhere in the world had a circuit board patterned floor and walls with randomized coding flicking here and there and…

Vera's thoughts stopped as she found herself staring at a pale cream colored creature a few inches from her nose.

Vera let out a little shriek and backed up so quickly she nearly tripped. The little creature giggled and floated happily through the air and brought its long arms up to cover its mouth in a futile attempt to stifle its giggles.

"D-Don't laugh at me…whatever you are," Vera said with as much force as she could muster, but the effect was lost when she realized she had absolutely no idea what she was talking to.

The Digignome just giggled again and twirled in the air as if to show off the purple markings that covered its plump belly. Its large eyes sparkled with obvious delight as it continued to fly around Vera in lazy circles.

Vera watched the creature float around her and found herself comforted by its warm light. But, she couldn't get the sound of the ocean to stop echoing ominously in her ears and, with much hesitation and a bit of fear she looked back at the black abyss she'd nearly walked into. She swallowed thickly as a shiver raced up her spine.

She found herself extremely worried when the Digignome began to fly away.

"Hey, wait a second!" Vera cried and chased after it. As long as she was heading away from that abyss she felt like she'd be fine but that didn't mean she wanted to be left alone! Besides, whatever that creature was it was cute and at the very least it was some comfort in this rippling and changing unnatural world.

The sound of the sea was growing louder.

Vera frowned at that, hadn't it been coming from the blackness behind her that she was leaving behind? It had sure seemed like it, so why was it getting louder…?

Suddenly the circuit board world vanished. There was no warning or waver or shimmer or anything to give the girl any warning. Instead it all vanished like someone had snapped a curtain away and reviled the real world. The bright world with a warm sun and blue skies above and grass beneath her feet.

Vera's mind blanked when she realized that she was running off a cliff when the world finished shifting. The ground flat out ended in a startling straight drop where water from the ocean before her brushed against the rocks. Already mid-step momentum carried her forward and over the edge to the crashing waters below.

Vera didn't really scream, there wasn't time since she didn't have very far to fall and her mind was struggling to process _what_ just happened. Of course, she tried to at least, taking in a huge gasp of air and letting it out the moment she hit the water.

The water was almost unnaturally blue, crested with foamy waves and, most of all, cold. It was deep though, no rocks just below the surface where she could have fallen and broken her body. She sunk under the surface in a plume of air bubbles she had dragged under with her decent.

Her attempted scream was just one of these many bubbles that silently floated to the surface, indistinguishable from the rest.

Water filled Vera's mouth even as she closed it to preserve precious oxygen. The brunette was a bit surprised when the water of what she had assumed to be the ocean wasn't salty in the slightest. In fact, since the impact had hurt surprisingly little she took a (very) brief moment to open her eyes and look around. The water stretched seemingly endlessly around her with nothing except the cliff face in sight.

Light poured from the surface and even with her hair getting in the way a bit it was easy enough to swim up. She'd sunk a decent depth from the force of the fall and by the time she neared the surface her lungs were burning and demanding life-giving oxygen.

Vera sucked in air greedily the moment her head breeched the surface of the water. Gasping, she simply treaded water for a few moments as she caught her breath and relived the burn in her lungs. She coughed a few times and wiped away the hair that had plastered itself over her eyes to the point it practically blinded her.

As soon as the drenched locks were moved away Vera looked around and located the cliffs easily enough. It wasn't hard considering that in every other direction there was only water that was pretty calm except for the occasional wave and the ones that crashed against the cliffs rather loudly.

Vera frowned, "Well…now what?"

She wasn't a professional swimmer by any stretch of the imagination but she could at least keep her head above the water easily enough that she wasn't in danger of drowning anytime soon. But she couldn't tread water indefinitely and going back to the cliffs was stupid. They weren't high, maybe twenty feet up at the very most, and she could probably scale them if she absolutely had to but there was the danger of the waves smashing her into the wall. In fact, she was really lucky that the current had careered her far enough from the waves to prevent that, though that was worryingly strong and it was still tugging at her…

Vera abruptly jerked out of her thoughts when she realized that she was still being pulled farther away from the cliffs. The brunette huffed and started sloppily swimming back towards the cliffs. As much as she didn't want to be bashed into the rocks it'd also be bad if she was tugged out to sea. If she was lucky she would find a lagoon or a beach-like area where it was calmer.

She wasn't getting any closer.

Vera frowned and changed her direction so she swum parallel to the cliffs instead of directly at them. She did not want to let a rip current drag her out and swimming against the flow was pointless. But that didn't help at all; in fact, she was being pulled out faster. A quick glance to her side only confused her more.

She wasn't being pulled out to sea like she thought since the cliffs only curved in slightly before jutting out into a rather impressively tall peninsula. No, she was being dragged towards that very peninsula, the roaring sound of churning water growing louder every moment.

Vera looked behind her and nearly screamed.

She hadn't seen it before since she'd been farther away (and only now she realized just how far she'd been pulled in those few short minutes) but now she could see the white rim of it. Where the water was being pulled and sucked greedily downwards in a spiral that spelled sure death for her.

A whirlpool.

And it was huge.

Vera panicked.

She knew about rip currents and things like that from her parents after one had nearly sucked her away. She knew what to do if she ever got caught it one, knew how to react and realized just how simple it was if she kept a cool head. But a whirlpool?

A whirlpool swallowed water from all sides. Unlike a rip current, one could not swim sideways and out of its grasp unless they were near the fringes of it. Vera was already deep in its grasp and being pulled closer still.

There was no way that a young girl was strong enough to escape the pull of a whirlpool large enough to swallow a cruise line ship whole.

Of course that didn't stop her from trying. She swam desperately to the cliffs. Though she was still afraid of that hurting her she at least figured it was better odds than the downward spiral behind her. Thrashing and swimming desperately, Vera swam as fast as she could no matter how futile it was.

She didn't want to die.

"Someone!" She shrieked as loud as she could and was rewarded with a mouthful of water. The waves were rougher now and the sound of the whirlpool was no longer muffled by that of the waves against the cliffs, "Someone help me!"

It made sense why she saw no cliffs when she was underwater, why she still hadn't seen any. Anything foolish to get close to it was almost sure to die and the stupid were quickly weeded out. It also meant that there was nothing there to help her. Not that Vera expected a dolphin or something to go out of its way to save her, but it was only natural to desire to salvation.

A part of Vera's mind also realized that even if there was a person nearby there was no way they could help her now. Not when she felt herself being sucked under the water and past the foaming lip of the whirlpool, muffling her pleads. The world was spinning like a demented Merry-go-round and water flooded everywhere and completely assaulted her sense.

It washed in her screaming mouth and filled her lungs, choking her without a care as it pulled her under the surface with its unforgiving grip.

* * *

**So a bit of a look at the Human World. Not sure just how often I'll be revisiting there but I'll guarantee a few more times at least.**

**Also a quick thanks to OmegaXis1 for helping me with Miwa and Kin.**


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